Students of state-owned tertiary institutions in Nasarawa State have appealed to striking lecturers and other staff to suspend the ongoing industrial action, warning that the prolonged shutdown of schools is taking a toll on their academic progress and future plans.
The appeal comes barely a week after academic and non-academic staff of public tertiary institutions in the state commenced an indefinite strike over the government’s failure to implement the new national minimum wage and its consequential salary adjustments.
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On Monday, the National President of the Nasarawa State Students Association (NASSA), Abimiku David, made the plea during a press briefing in Lafia, the state capital. He said students were caught in the middle of a protracted labour dispute over which they had no control.
“As an organised and responsible students’ body, we understand and respect the legitimate demands of the Joint Unions of Nasarawa State Tertiary Institutions,” Mr David said. “However, we are deeply concerned about the severe impact of this strike on students, who remain the most vulnerable and affected people in this situation.”
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Mr David urged members of JUNSTI to consider the plight of students and suspend the strike while negotiations with the state government continue. He warned that the prolonged closure of the affected institutions threatens the stability of the academic calendar, graduation timelines, career plans and the future aspirations of thousands of students.
According to him, students of Isa Mustapha Agwai I Polytechnic, Lafia, the College of Agriculture, Science and Technology, Lafia, and the College of Education, Akwanga, are once again bearing the brunt of an industrial dispute that has disrupted academic activities repeatedly in recent years.
He also called on the Nasarawa State Government to act swiftly to resolve the dispute, saying education should not be held hostage to prolonged negotiations when solutions are attainable through sincere engagement.
“Education must not be sacrificed on the altar of delay,” Mr David said. “Industrial harmony is possible when all parties place the future of education and the welfare of students at the centre of their decisions.”
He added that NASSA would continue to engage relevant stakeholders through peaceful advocacy and constructive dialogue until academic activities are fully restored across the state.
The students’ appeal follows the commencement of an indefinite strike by academic and non-academic staff of public tertiary institutions in Nasarawa State on 29 December 2025. The action was announced by the Joint Unions of Nasarawa State Tertiary Institutions, an umbrella body comprising several academic and non-academic unions.
The JUNSTI chairperson, Samson Gbande, said the strike was necessitated by the state government’s failure to comply with the full implementation of the new national minimum wage, despite what he described as repeated assurances.
Speaking to journalists in Lafia after a meeting with union leaders, Mr Gbande said the decision to down tools affected Isa Mustapha Agwai Polytechnic, Lafia, the College of Agriculture, Science and Technology, Lafia, and the College of Education, Akwanga.
He explained that the unions had held several meetings with government officials without any tangible outcome. According to him, negotiations took place at the office of the deputy governor on 6 August, 23 October, 3 December and 15 December 2025, during which the government reportedly assured the unions that the new wage structure would take effect from November 2025.
“Regrettably, despite the union’s patience for over one year, these assurances have not translated into action,” Mr Gbande said. “The government has failed to honour agreements it freely entered into with us.”
He said the strike, which was initially announced on the eve of Christmas, was reaffirmed at the latest meeting of the unions and would remain in force until the government meets their demands. Mr Gbande urged union members to remain calm and united, assuring them that the leadership would pursue the matter to a logical conclusion.
The current industrial action is not the first by the unions in 2025. On 9 February, JUNSTI embarked on a two-week warning strike over the non-implementation of the N30,000 minimum wage consequential adjustment, delayed promotions and the N70,500 minimum wage.
At the time, the unions said the warning strike was resolved at an emergency meeting held on 4 February 2025 after the state government failed to respond to an ultimatum issued on 15 January.
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“We have approached the Nasarawa State Government severally over what belonged to us but to no avail,” Mr Gbande said during that earlier action. “So the only option left is strike.”
The unions under JUNSTI include the Academic Staff Union of Polytechnics, the Academic Staff Union of Colleges of Agriculture and Allied Institutions, the Colleges of Education Academic Staff Union, the Senior Staff Association of Nigerian Polytechnics, the Senior Staff Union in Colleges of Education and the Non-Academic Staff Union.
JUNSTI has maintained that the continued delay in implementing agreed salary structures undermines staff morale, productivity and stability within the state’s tertiary education system. The union has repeatedly thanked its members for their patience, insisting that their sacrifices would not be in vain.
As the strike enters another week, students say they fear being the long-term casualties of a dispute that has already disrupted their studies and cast uncertainty over the academic calendar of public tertiary institutions in Nasarawa State.
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